University of South Carolina Law Class of 2018 Forum

[Curious Applicant]

My situation is similar to that of bluehose above. I got a proposal for a scholarship, but even with that scholarship it would be more expensive for me to attend South Carolina than any of the other schools from which I've heard so far, one of which is also ranked much higher than South Carolina. A couple of questions:

Is there any way to get more funding from the school? Has anyone heard of any strategies for doing this, or does the school simply not negotiate under any circumstances?

Why is the school so expensive? The standard line from the school seems to be, "Think about where you want to practice." Is this the school's way of saying that they are so dominant in the South Carolina legal market that they can charge a premium for access to it?

It is an unfortunate situation because I am truly interested in the school and in being in the state of South Carolina. It wouldn't take a tremendous amount of additional scholarship funds for me to choose South Carolina Law, but it sounds like I can't get even a little bit extra.

[ayl]

My situation is similar to that of bluehose above. I got a proposal for a scholarship, but even with that scholarship it would be more expensive for me to attend South Carolina than any of the other schools from which I've heard so far, one of which is also ranked much higher than South Carolina. A couple of questions:

Is there any way to get more funding from the school? Has anyone heard of any strategies for doing this, or does the school simply not negotiate under any circumstances?

Why is the school so expensive? The standard line from the school seems to be, "Think about where you want to practice." Is this the school's way of saying that they are so dominant in the South Carolina legal market that they can charge a premium for access to it?

It is an unfortunate situation because I am truly interested in the school and in being in the state of South Carolina. It wouldn't take a tremendous amount of additional scholarship funds for me to choose South Carolina Law, but it sounds like I can't get even a little bit extra.

First, a few general things. Are you from SC or do you want to practice here? If you are from SC and intend to stay, that would change my answer slightly. However, I do want to say that the rankings do not matter all that much. What and how you do in law school will matter a lot, and the rankings at some point will not help or hurt you in that regard.

As far as funding, the short answer is no. The school simply doesn't have much to give out. I would guess because we have such little funding. USC also gives a lot of money to out of state students and doesn't condition their scholarships, so there is little money going back into the "pool." It isn't fun, and I still am a little bitter that I didn't get more of an offer, but my experience here thus far has outweighed that problem (for me).

For expense, I was under the impression USC was actually really affordable. Most out of state students get in state equalizers, and the cost of living in Columbia isn't high. When I was in your shoes, all of my other options (higher ranked), even with larger scholarships would've been more expensive when everything went into account. Obviously, I don't know your specific situation, but I wouldn't think it was all that expensive to go here compared to what all law schools charge.

I would be extremely shocked to thing the school charged more because of any dominance in the SC legal market. That dominance really just comes from being the only law school here that isn't about to get shut down. SC does tend to hire its own, so yes, if you want to break into a market here (especially Charleston), you should go here. It's a finicky state. However, I don't think that's any reason as to why USC charges what they do.

Do you know perhaps why you are interested in this school? Have you visited? It may be worth it for you in the long run, but expenses are a huge factor in choosing where to go. I would encourage you to visit if you haven't already and do ask more questions. Like I said earlier, the cost factor isn't pleasant, but I have truly enjoyed my first year here, and I am so glad I didn't go to the other (higher ranked) schools. At the end of the day, this will be a tough choice, but it'll be your choice, so keep your needs first!

[jepper]

The school website has a massive list of outside scholarships. You should look at that. I know an attorney who is on the board of the school and said it is crazy how many of these scholarships go unused because people simply do not apply. I haven't looked into it really besides seeing the list, but it maybe be worth some inquiry.

[Curious Applicant]

Jepper, thanks for the suggestion. Ayl, I would rather not go into the particulars of my situation here, but pm me if you want to discuss elsewhere. What I will say is that USC is definitely more expensive than the state schools in the surrounding states, such as UNC, UGA, Tennessee, Alabama, etc., while also having lower LSAT and GPA medians than most or all of them. It's great that the school offers in-state tuition to many out-of-state students, but that is not an unusual or above market offer to make.

[CBlaw]

Admits,

So I just received conformation that they received my deposit the other day, and are just now looking into places to live. I am all about saving money so wanted to create an account on here to see if anyone was looking for a roommate for next year. They only thing I am looking for in a roommate is they must be serious about law school. I do not want someone that will be partying or being loud in the apartment when I am trying to do work and want someone who expects the same.

If anyone has looked into places and is looking for that roommate you can message me on here, or if anyone is in the same spot and wants to look for a place together I can do that too.

Other relevant info: Male, 22, From NC, went to undergraduate at Penn State. Any other questions just message me !

Thanks! Looking forward to next year

[hokie6260]

Could anyone (or all ) that have been accepted PM with their numbers? I am interested in applying next cycle. Getting out of the military and really trying decide where I want to end up and SC is very high on my list. I just took the LSAT and do not feel like I did that great, but we will see. I just want to see where I stack up agains this year's cycle. Thank you for any assistance!! Congrats to all the future Cocks!